Genuine Body Kit: Self-Fitting Diary

[driveforward]

Oh that's a horrible design. Any chance of dirt getting inside the doors through those holes? I'm thinking of removing the sills, fill up the holes and paint the area the same color as the doors. What is your opinion on this? I'm afraid it might look bad considering the higher line of the plastic next to the front and rear wheel, unless I get the bodykit. Thanks alot for the picture.

Yup, dirt can get in (there was some in mine), given the only barrier is the sticky foam tape - which doesn't go over all the holes. Robin was talking of a similar, fill, level and paint idea. If this were to be done it would remain level with the plastic by the front and rear wheels given the existence of the 'step' at the base of the doors.

Keep us posted on what you do

Ian

 

[Xiter]

@xiter: got snow?

Bret

Moi, no we have a tropical climate in Sweden, didn't you know?

 

[bretti_kivi]

-offtopic-
snö snö

i'll be in Göteborg / Dals-Ed at the end of March again and i'm hoping that there won't be the snow/rain/floods/wind chaos (delete as appropriate) as on the last few visits
outside our office, last week.. yes, that's the baltic.
http://www.audi-a2club.de/attachment.php?attachmentid=10720

-ontopic-

I'm interested to see just how good the finish on the kit will be, though i fear that filling would mean a respray of the doors.. and then you might as well do the whole thing. Flip-Flop anyone? You could also remove the "protection" strip half way down as I bet that has the same issue...

Bret

 

[driveforward]

DAY 3: Spending Money

DAY 3: Spending Money

Today I have mostly been spending money! I haven't touched the kit at all, however, I have been busy sourcing products that I will need later during this project. (I also need 2 new tyres so got that quoted too )

Once I've applied the clear-coat I will need some rubbing compound to allow me to get a smooth finish to the clear-coat and thus remove the rough surface that is likely to exist after applying the clear coat spray. I have previously done quite a bit of research on this, and had come to the conclusion that the best product for the job would be some Turtle Wax rubbing compound. The problem with this is that no-where in the UK appears to sell it.. until a lucky eBay find landed me a bargain:

£3.49 Delivered

Next up was the task of getting some swirl remover to treat the parts once I've used the rubbing compound. This will hopefully bring out a nice shine to the mat finish of the clear coat after using the rubbing compound.. I was originally gunning for some 3M Perfect-It Swirl Mark Remover, but like the Turtle Wax, it's only stocked in the mighty US of A_______. I therefore set about finding a suitable substitute, and after much googling decided that you can't go wrong with any product from Meguiars, so I settled on:

£10.27

Now, up next I have then to protect the paint and clear-coat once I've got it smooth, shining and without scratches. Time for some good wax to seal and protect the surface. Well, as I was already on the Meguiars site I selected:

13.99

 

[driveforward]

Now, with all this attention being spent on the newly sprayed bits of bodywork, I decided it would be worthwhile bringing the rest of the paintwork up to a similar standard. I've been watching various discussions on Detailing over the last 6 months and had already decided that my A2 could do with some attention, therefore, credit card in hand I added the following to my cart:

12.99

Right, I decided I'd spent enough (!) so all in with delivery, the Meguiars stuff came to: £41.24

Now, finally I'm going to leave you with something to puzzle over.. Today I also bought the following from B&Q for £8.48 (and some Vinyl gloves for protection during application £1.68):

Stay tuned folks, next week things get interesting! Watch out for a midweek update *

*I hope I'm not hyping this too much

 

[robin]

Now, finally I'm going to leave you with something to puzzle over.. Today I also bought the following from B&Q for £8.48 (and some Vinyl gloves for protection during application £1.68):

is it to fill the space in your wallet ""

robin

 

[wooly A2]

Ian great to see things are moving on ......
Be very careful how much foam you use , I use this in my job,
it is very difficult to gauge how much you need as it expands
a lot so dont go mad thinking that you have not got enough ......

The foam always used to come with gloves inside the cap ,
I Always manage to find a couple of pairs when im filling up with diesel LOL !!!!

Its looking Great so far .......

 

[driveforward]

LOL @ Robin.. That's a great suggestion!

Carl, great advice - I think before using it I will do a few test bits in order to see just how much it does expand!

 

[driveforward]

Boy have I had a lot of deliveries this week!! Everything has turned up - and more - (my BMC Air filter and wind deflectors were also received). This is one damned expensive month for my car as my road tax renewal has landed on the door mat, the big service is booked for a few weeks time and after that my insurance is due!!

Back on topic... Look what turned up today

Thanks for the heads up Robin I was sweating a bit towards the end of the week (hence no mid-week update!) as Parcel Farce took an age to deliver this lot - talk about leaving things late, the delivery finally arrived at 18.25 this Friday evening

Big day tomorrow!

 

[driveforward]

DAY 4: Paint Spraying

DAY 4: Paint Spraying

The day started with a trip to HellFrauds to get the paint, thinners and clear coat:

These came to £50, and hopefully mark the end of the big spending!

Next up, I set about preparing the garage for spraying by putting down some dust sheets and connecting up the compressor and spray gun for a test. This is the point at which everything stopped.. My compressor worked to begin with (for about 3 minutes) whilst I was adjusting the spray gun using some water. However the tone it was making changed and from that point it ceased to be able to build up any great amount of pressure. Erk. At this point I gave Robin al call as I recalled him mentioning he had access to a compressor - many thanks to Robin for his help as a few hours later he brought the following round:

So I damped down the floor with the water in the gun, then positioned my axel stands on top of the workmate in the centre of the garage to provide me with a makeshift 'spray station' in order to suspend the parts in mid air for full access. I then set about mixing my first 200ml of paint for the spray gun reservoir, working on using 125ml of thinners for every 75ml of paint.

 

[driveforward]

The spraying then took approx 3 hours, applying multiple coats to each item, slowly building up the paint. I did have a couple of problems, one of the caps got heavily covered in paint and a couple of runs occurred on one of the side skirts. When this happened, I let the runs dry, then rubbed them down with 600 grit wet and dry before re-spraying. Finally I finished the bulk of my spraying at 20.00 last night.

Now, as it was dark although all things appeared to look good under the artificial light, I fully expect to have to do a bit more spraying this morning once I get the parts outside under daylight.

So, until later today...

 

[chucknaldo]

Looking at the way you have prepared and executed this project so far i'm sure you'll do a stellar job. Good luck! Can't wait till it's finished.

 

[driveforward]

DAY 4.5: More Paint Spraying

DAY 4.5: More Paint Spraying

The messy stuff is now done

Today got off to a better start than yesterday, after inspecting each part of the kit under daylight I was pleasantly surprised with the finish following yesterdays painting. I didn't retouch any of the sills or covers, applied a light bit of touch-up spraying to both side skirts and the rear valance. The only part that needed more attention was the front valance. A couple of coats later I was done with silver spraying. I used just over 1/3 of a litre of paint and about 3/4 of a litre of thinners. Upon inspection under daylight, the finish of the various components was a very good match for my dirty A2 So overall, I was very happy with the outcome to this point.

Next up was applying the clear coat lacquer, so, once I'd cleaned the spray gun, wiped down all the body kit parts to remove settled dust and overspray I set about spraying the clear coat. To my surprise I found it easier to spray the clear coat - it just 'went on without the worry'. I started by treating each component in turn, applying 3 coats each with 5 mins between. Then, once I was happy I had laid down a good base on each part, and managed to sufficiently cover the ends and corners I then wiped all the parts down once more and brought them all into the garage at the same time. Now I loaded the gun and went for a serious piece of relentless spraying, laying down as much clear coat on each part as I could practically do without dunking them in a vat of the stuff! This continued with only the odd minor break to refill my spray guns 200ml reservoir until I used all of the 1 litre of clear coat that I had purchased.

Then, the whole lot went outside (as did I) for some air!

The finish now has some depth following the application of the clear coat, however, as expected it's rather rough to the touch - good job I have a tin of rubbing compound here just for the job

I have now gained one week on my original schedule by getting the clear coating done this weekend also, fingers crossed I can make up even more time on the next stages as I need to find a free weekend or two for tyre fitting and getting stuff sorted for my trip to Germany at Easter!

 

[driveforward]

DAY 4.6: Elbow Grease.... WOW!

DAY 4.6: Elbow Grease.... WOW!

This evening I started the final phase of finishing the kit: rubbing compound and swirl remover.

Today I tackled the door sills, various covers and caps and the front valance. Following the clear coating, the finish on the items is glossy in places but overall rather matt, with a rough gritty feel. To remedy this, I followed the following steps with each item:

1) Wipe down with damp cloth to remove dust etc.
2) Spread thin layer of rubbing compound over the surface I was about to treat, then rub with a fair amount of pressure using another cloth. Continue until traces of compound are barely visible.
3) Wipe with damp cloth to remove any remaining rubbing compound, dry off with another cloth if necessary.
4) Apply swirl remover, not overdoing it, but enough to facilitate a decent spread of liquid when rubbing with cloth. Using yet another cloth, I now buffed the surface vigorously - generating a fair bit of heat in the cloth, continuing until the surface starts to 'squeak' reassuringly
5) Stand back and admire..

These steps have turned rough, matt surfaces into smooth, shiny surfaces with great colour depth. To say I'm impressed is an understatement, the Meguairs Swirl Remover 2 is one hell of a good product, probably the best paint rejuvenator I've ever used.

The next few nights (4.7 and probably 4.8) will see me doing the same to the rear valance and side skirts. No pics tonight as even with the much improved appearance, you wouldn't be able to see the difference under dull electric lighting

 

[Darren C]

Top Marks Ian!!

You continue to be an inspiration to budding "modders" and enthusiasts alike!!

Keep up the good work.

Darren

 

[driveforward]

DAY 5: Day of Fitting!

DAY 5: Day of Fitting!

As expected, I spent another few evenings rubbing down, smoothing and polishing up the remaining items of the kit, all in time for a mammoth day of activity today!

10.00am
First up, I had to get the car cleaned up, so out came the Karcher and trusty shampoo. I cleaned all of the car bar the wheels

Now it was time to get the A2 jacked up and on axel stands. I started with just getting the front off the ground as I had decided that the front valance would be the easiest and hence, best place to start. First off the wheels had to be removed so that during the trial fit I could drill two holes on either side in order to fit the fixing screws. Trial fitting:

 

[driveforward]

Then, once both my long suffering roped in labourer (my dad) and I were happy with how the valance had to fit we removed it, cleaned the surfaces that were to be bonded using the resin that came with the kit and then applied Bondloc's Plastic Weld (available from Maplin Electronics) as the agents that came with the kit had well and truly expired! We replaced the valance, fixed the screws and then where necessary used some trusty gaffer tape to secure/hold any areas requiring a bit of assistance to match up and bond.

Next the rear of the A2 was also raised and all 4 wheels removed (makes for easier cleaning too!). The side skirt mounting brackets were fitted (the rear one has a lip (circled in red), this was cut off on both sides as it prevented the skirt from slotting into the groove between the existing black plastic and painted bodywork).

Rear:

Front:

Once more, the skirt was then trial fitted and fixing holes for the screws drilled into the newly fitted brackets:

Bonding the side skirts is a real PITA given the massive surface requiring fixing, however, bear with it and use tape where necessary and you should be fine - my drivers side skirt did now fit as well as the passenger one:

 

[driveforward]

Thankfully, the rear valance is almost as easy to fit as the front one. So, as usual, there was a trial fit and then the item was bonded - note - no extra gaffer tape required as it goes on so well

Yup, whilst the wheels were off I took advantage of the fact and repainted my drums - they had started to rust again a little following first painting them last year.

After the final side skirt was fitted, I moved onto the side sills on the doors. these required a bit of sealant to be used in lieu of the sticky tape, hence the masking tape providing a little support:

 

[driveforward]

Next, did anyone figure out why I bought expanding foam..? Well:

I applied this to the side skirts and rear valance to provide some support to the essentially hollow plastic, and in the case of the rear valance to reduce drag and hence future sagging.

17.00 ..And there we have it: 5 days and lots of hard work gives you:

 

[driveforward]

I'll work out exact costings later, however did it save me money on getting it professionally fitted: Yes, about 50%.
Was it hard work: Yes
Was it fun: yes
Am I happy: Very

There is still a bit of work to do, so some better pics will follow over the coming weeks. I need to polish up the new parts a bit more then wax them, clay bar, swirl remove and wax the rest of the car, and although there's hardly any difference in paint colour even now, after doing the above I think I'll get the match and overall finish to an almost perfect outcome..!

Hope you've enjoyed, and learned from my ramblings... I'm off for a beer!

Ian